Unless I have misread this question wrong five times the correct answer should be A. How could an overtaking vessel see the stern light of the boat she has passed abaft of beam of?
Deck
Rules of the Road: BOTH INTERNATIONAL & INLAND Two vessels are in an overtaking situation. Which of...
Discussing this exam question.
The wording is tricky I agree. Calling the first vessel overtaken is using past tense to refer to present tense. The part I pay attention to is the fact they are still in the overtaking situation. This means the overtaking has yet to occur. This means they would still be astern of the overtaken vessel and would only see the stern light.
a is correct